Weightlifting shoes- are they awesome y/n

The last thread about this was from 2006, so here we are...

I've been on Starting Strength for a little less than a month now, and things are moving along nicely. I've read a lot about the benefits of wearing a "proper" weightlifting shoe, i.e. stiff sides and slightly elevated heels, and wanted to get some of our more experienced lifters takes on dropping the cash on a pair. Or rather, asking someone to drop the cash on a pair for christmas. I lift barefoot right now and was hoping some of you guys could weigh in on whether it's worth it to make the move to a legit shoe, and if so, what kind you'd recommend.

I lift in converses or fivefingers and it's been great. That said, there have been times where I wished I had weightlifting shoes because my ankles and hips were tight enough that proper bottom position in a back squat wasn't (or was only barely) possible. In those instances I put a 2.5lb or 5lb plate under each heel and it was fine. That's all I can contribute.

What a disgrace it is for a man to grow old without ever seeing the beauty and strength of which his body is capable. -Xenophon's Socrates

I too lift in Vibrams or socks. If I had more money I'd get some proper weightlifting shoes as I have slightly wonky ankles but an awful lot of people have gotten very strong in chucks/vibrams. I would say they are handy but not essential.

I am happy lifting in my Chuck T's. I think they were around $30, and you can usually get them on sale for cheaper, vice some $110 lifting/CrossFit shoe. I do get the lack of support around the ankles, particularly if you do your back squats with a wide stance, but its hasn't been enough of an issue for me to want to buy something different.

Really, Rippetoe is the only lifting "guru" that I have read insisting on Weightlifting shoes for a general strength and conditioning/powerlifting program. That doesn't mean there aren't others, I just haven't read them. But I have read enough "experts" who are fine with chucks, vibrams, or barefoot that I don't feel compelled to get WL shoes.